The hubby (Warren) and I recently spent a couple of days in York on a much needed break from everyday stresses. We’ve been to York many times over the years and absolutely love this fascinating city which has so much to do and see. It’s only an hour away from us by train so we decided to leave the car behind. You can’t do everything York has to offer in 48 hours so I’m sharing my favourite 9 things to do in York for couples (without kids).
York City Walls Walk
Strangely in all the years we’ve been going to York we hadn’t ‘walked the walls’ until this visit. York’s city walls are the ‘longest medieval town walls in England‘ and take about 2 hours to walk. The walk is definitely worth it for the views and the walls themselves are interesting with their arrow slits and impressive towers. The York City Walls Walk is open from about 8am till dusk daily (there are gates along with way which are padlocked out of these hours). It’s a circular walk so you can start it wherever there are steps leading up to it or you can start at the beginning at Barker Tower on Lendal Bridge. A lot of the walk is fairly narrow with railings on one side and there are several flights of stone steps at various points (so if you have mobility issues you may have difficulties). I advise wearing some comfortable shoes!
The City Walls Walk leads you into different areas of York City, and we certainly came across parts we hadn’t seen before, such as the gardens behind York Minster. We also spotted one of several grass animals that have been dotted around York for Summer 2022. If you need a break during the walk then there are several exit points where you can find a cafe or a pub.
York Cat Trail
If you want to explore York in a fun, free and historic walk then the York Cat Trail is a must. We enjoyed this so much it had to be included in the things to do in York for couples. Pick up a leaflet and follow the 22 detailed directions around the city. At each point there is a cat statue to see somewhere on the buildings. it’s a great way to see more of York, discover shops you hadn’t noticed before and get a bit of exercise too! The Trail is 2km long, takes about 1 – 1.5 hours (if you don’t stop) and should add 4000 steps to your Fitbit (if you have one). The Trail is sponsored by The Cat Gallery which has some lovely cat-themed gifts and you can also buy The Mystery Cats of York Booklet which shows photographs, locations and stories about the cat statues on the York buildings.
The Shambles
You can’t visit York without taking a stroll through The Shambles. There’s definitely a lot of walking involved when you visit York. Thought to be the inspiration for Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley, the street is quite narrow at one part and it is said that people could lean out of their upstairs windows and shake hands across the cobblestones. The Shambles has some lovely little shops to browse around, including The Shop That Must Not Be Named, Roly’s Fudge Pantry and Little Saffron’s Gift Shop.
The streets branching off from The Shambles also have many shops for you to explore from clothing to collectibles to the Kathe Wohlfahrt all-year-round Christmas shop on Stonegate. You could spend hours just looking in the shop windows! Warren especially likes the Trembling Madness Craft Beer Store on Stonegate. Not for it’s craft beer but for it’s huge selection of miniatures (he’s a collector of spiced rum miniatures). Trembling Madness also boasts a very small pub on site so pop in on your visit to try their craft beers.
Jorvik Viking Centre
The Jorvik Viking Centre is built on one of the most famous discoveries of modern archaelogy. In the late 1970s archaeologists uncovered the houses, workshops and backyards of the Viking city of Jorvik as it was nearly 1000 years ago. A trip to the Centre takes you on a journey through the reconstructed Viking-age streets so you can experience life as it would have been in the 10th century. But this isn’t just a ‘walk around’ experience, you glide around while sat in a fairground-type car ride. We visited the Viking Centre without children and thoroughly enjoyed it … including the animatronic characters. A really good place to visit for anyone interested in history, archaeology and the Vikings (although unfortunately there was no sign of Ragnar :-)) Your visit lasts about an hour and there’s also a gift shop where you can buy some Jorvik Mead or Battleaxe Bitter. Definitely worth a visit if you’re travelling through the North Yorkshire area.
Ghost Bus
Although I haven’t actually been on the York Ghost Bus, I have been on the company’s Edinburgh Ghost Bus so highly recommend it. Billed as the UK’s only comedy-horror theatre experience on wheels, it certainly met my expectations and I am happy to include York’s Ghost Bus in my things to do in York for couples. The 1 hour and 15 minute trip will guide you through York’s haunted history while making you laugh and maybe jump a little. This 1960s double decker bus, painted black and featuring antique lamps and plush red velvet curtains is the only way to explore the more ghostly/gruesome side of York.
Cat’s Whiskers Cat Cafe
As a cat lover it was a no-brainer to visit The Cat’s Whiskers Cat Cafe in York. There’s something very relaxing, after a couple of hours walking York city walls, about having a coffee surrounded by cute bundles of fluff. The Cat Cafe is so popular you are advised to book a time slot when you want to visit. As well as a good cup of coffee there were a selection of cakes on offer to choose from. We both went for the Carrot Cake topped with orange buttercream frosting. The lady who served us was quick to point out that Pumpkin (a beautiful fluffy ginger cat) liked to try and swipe some cake from customers’ plates and that carrot cake was her favourite. She also pointed out that as cake wasn’t good for her we had to stop her doing it. We were given food covers to put over the cake when we weren’t eating. She wasn’t exaggerating! Every time Pumpkin heard the scrape of the fork she was on the table!
As well as Pumpkin the cake stealer, the Cat Cafe houses about 10 cats who were previously in rescue centres. A lot of them are subsequently adopted and happily go off to their forever-homes. Daisy, a sleek black and white cat was happy to play with us for the duration of our visit. And a very stylish egg chair was taken up by Sprout, a large 7 year old black and white cat, who was very happy to just watch or snooze.
There is an admission fee of £7 per person for an hour’s visit, which goes towards looking after the cats. If you’re a cat-lover you’ll thoroughly enjoy it.
Eating Out
There are so many great places to eat in York it would be impossible to visit them all in 48 hours. The Shambles market is full of street food where you can grab something delicious and the nearby winding streets are full of cafes and restaurants to suit everyone’s taste. Here are a few we visited on this trip.
The Earl Grey Tea Rooms
This quaint little shop on The Shambles is deceptively large inside. The entrance opens onto a little shop which then leads through to an oak-beamed tea room. Just when you think this is it, you’re led through to a spacious floral courtyard that was delightful to have lunch in. You can choose from sandwiches, salads, hot meals, afternoon tea or just a cuppa and a slice of cake. Hubby chose the Caesar Salad which came with a nice seeded bun and I had the Prawn & Mayo sandwich which came with salad and crisps. We also had a pot of tea for two. It was quite pricey at about £30 for lunch but it was tasty and the surroundings were very pleasant so I would visit again.
Nice To See You Cafe
We popped in to the Nice To See You coffee shop/cafe on Goodramgate just before we went to the Cat Cafe. A very modern looking space as opposed to the olde-worlde feel of The Earl Grey Tea Rooms. The menu is fairly small and as I don’t eat meat (and I’m fairly fussy) I found the choices quite limited. Warren ordered Avocado on Sourdough Toast with Hummus, Sun-dried Tomatoes and Rocket and I went for Scrambled Eggs on Sourdough Toast. We were very pleasantly surprised when our lunch arrived. This was what I’d call very posh looking stuff on toast. The scrambled egg was probably the nicest scrambled egg I’ve ever tasted and hubby said his lunch choice was so good he’d have it again that night if we couldn’t find a restaurant! We also ordered a cappucino and a black coffee and the whole meal came to around £20.
Marzano Italian Restaurant & Grill
Nestled away amongst many other restaurants on Fossgate, this lovely Italian restaurant draws you in from the street. I must tell you that Warren and I have a hard time choosing a restaurant to eat at. We don’t like the same food so we usually compromise. This night we went with my choice of Italian food. The Marzano has an ordinary menu and a set menu so there is lots to choose from. We decided to go for the set menu which was 2 courses for £18.50 per person. I had deep-fried breaded brie for starters and then the Calzone Con Funghi E Formaggio. The calzone contained goats cheese, 3 types of mushroom, fresh spinach, pesto, mozzarella and pomodoro sauce. Warren chose the Bruschetta and the Casarecce Pasta E Pollo Pomodorini Basiico (pasta with marinated chicken breast pieces, oven roasted tomatoes and mushrooms in a tomato, garlic and fresh basil sauce. The whole meal was absolutely delicious. That calzone pizza was so tasty and very large (I couldn’t eat it all), and Warren decided he did like Italian food after all. Highly recommend the Marzano and earns its place on my things to do in York for couples list.
Mumbai Lounge
On our second night in York it was Warren’s turn to choose the restaurant and he fancied Indian food, which I’m not too keen on as I hate coriander and it’s usually in everything. But I was willing to give it a go. The Mumbai Lounge is also on Fossgate and we didn’t have to wait for a table. It has a welcoming atmosphere and the staff were pleasant and helpful. The menu is quite extensive so it took us a while to choose something. Warren ordered the Combi Chat (mushrooms with garlic and coriander in a massalla sauce) and an Achari Chicken (mix pickle massala with green chillies, spring onions and coriander). I went for the Salmon Tikka and the Spiced Crust Monkfish with Lemon Rice (I asked for no coriander in any of mine). I forgot to take photos of the main meal. Warren thoroughly enjoyed his meal. I enjoyed the salmon (although it was going a little dry), but I really didn’t like the Monkfish. I think it was overcooked and had very little sauce with it, and I could definitely taste coriander in the rice. It didn’t change my mind about Indian food unfortunately. However I did have a dessert of salted caramel ice cream with a chocolate ganache which was delicious. We had a couple of Cobra beers with the meal and the bill came to about £65 (which was reasonable considering I had salmon and monkfish).
As we were only in York for 48 hours it felt like we had crammed quite a lot in! Obvioulsy there are tons of other things to do in York so here are a few links to websites that will share more things to do in York for couples.
10 Most Romantic Things To Do In York for Couples
16 Very Best Things To Do In York
We’ll definitely be visiting York again soon!
